Air-cooled damper



June 23, 1925. 1,542,989 w, M. coNNERY AIR COOLED DAMPER Filed May' 22. 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet l June '23, 1925.

W. M. CONNERY AIR `COOLED DAMPER Filed My 22. 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 23, 1925.

W. M. CONNERY AIR COOLED DAMPER Filed May 22. 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 mun H IW,

Ms A@ June 23, 1925.

W. M. CONNERY AIR COOLED DAMPER Filed May 22. 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Il A Ill

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III/111111111111 Patented June 23, 1925e e i UNITED STAT-EsA PATENT OFFICE.

To all 1li/10m t may concern.'

Be it known that WILLIAM M. CONNERY, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Philadelphia., in the county of Philadelphia and State ofA Pennsylvania, has invented a new and useful Air-Cooled Damper, of which the following is a specification.

Prior to the present invention, dampers have been used for superheat boiler furnaces and preheaters (such as disclosed in co-pending application in the name of Villiarn M. Connery, filed 22nd day of May, 1924, Serial No. 715,140) for the conduction of a forced draft to be heated by a regenerative use of the lower degrees of waste heat and subsequently injected into boiler furnaces for the purpose'of aiding in the combustion of the fuel. In these constructions, there has been no attempt madevand no purpose in view to obviate the warping of-the walls of the damper. While the dempers are hollow, the purposes to which they are put are entirely different from the purposes of the present invention.

In large power generating plants superheat tlues must be employed for conveying the products of combustion from the several boiler furnaces to a single chimney. This can be and has been safely and conveniently accomplished by breechings,`such as disclosed in Letters Patent to William M. Connery, issued the 16th day of May, 1922, No. 1,416,334, wherein provision has been made for preventing undue collapsing of the walls of the fluesor breechings.

In using these superheat fines or breechings, it is necessary to provide some means` within the tlues or breechings for controlling the gases in their flow` and this has hitherto been doneby movable plates within the term of damper. Within recent years, the 'sectional 'areas of these lues or breechings have so largely increased that warping of the plates or so-called dampers has become a serious menace due to the intensity of the heat passing through the fiues or breechings.

lith this menace in mind, it is a purpose of the present invention, in order to employ the superheat flue in the above-mentioned patent, to provide an improved damper which, though hollow as in the construc- AIR-oooLED DAMPER.

Application filed May 22, 1924. Serial No. 715,139.

tions previously mentioned, 1is provided with means for causing a circulation of cooling air in a circuitous course through the damper, enabling the users of these superheat flues or breechings to operate power generating plants safely and conveniently without danger or chance of stoppage through failure of the dampers.

The dampers heretofore mentioned and which are hollow and designed for conduction of a forced draft to be heated by passing through the damper to aid in the combustion of fuel are not designed along practical l'ines, wherebyit would be possible to claim a double use. lThe designers of such dampers did not vhave in mind the purpose of preventing warping, therefore the constructionsare not such that they could be used for such a purpose, without the cost of installation being prohibitive. Furthermore, the designers of-such structures have made no attempt to show how such dampers can be constructed in order to use them in superheat. fines or breechin-gs of increased cross sectional area in order to prevent warping. l

Another purpose is to provide, in a dampa forced draft, expansion stiifened hollow damper structures conforming to the cross ysectional area of the fine orbreeching,in

combination with stiifening ribs, such as are used in Letters' Patent No. 1,416,334, arranged in staggered relation toform circuitous passages to insure the conduction of the cooling air.

lStill another purpose is to provide a damper for thek conduction ofy cooling air from a yforced draft outside and remoteI from the flue and discharged on lthe outside' These stiffeners permit the damper Walls to expand and contract due to the cool air on the interior and the heat on the exterior of the damper, so that the damper will provide aV damper built up of steel sheets having eX- er for the conduction of coolingr air-from I sheets or walls are maintain its uniform shape and afford eitccllent service as well as durability.

A still further purpose is to provide a damper. which, when constructed of steel sheets, the margins of the opposed walls of the damper may be welded, riveted or otherwise secured together, the steel sheets being disposed upon diametrically opposite sides of a hollow spindle and dueto the marginal portions being fastened together, the walls are tapered toward each other in cross Sectonali areawh-ich walls in them.-

selves-aet as; stififeners and reinforcings Ato prevent undue warping of the damper, especially when assisted to a great extent by" the stiffeners formed in the walls or steel sheets.

Moreover is the aim to utilize a tubular spindle shaft in conjunction with the circuitous passages inth damper, for conveying the cooling air intoV and'outA of the circuitous passageasail' spindle or shaft having means Jforv the purpose of` suspending the damper in its operative position.

It is to be understood that the particulars herein given are in` no way limitative and that, while still'4 keeping withiny the scope ofthe invention, any desired modifications of detail, and'desired proportions may be made in apparatus according to the circumstnnces.

The invention-* comprises further features and combinations ofparts to be hereinafterI set forth, shown in the drawings and 'claimed inthe drawings Figure 1 is a 'view of a superheat flue or breeching, showing the improved construction ofl damper applied in fcordance with Vae' invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view through the damper, in fact, with one of'its steel,V sheets or walls removed, more vclearly showing the circuitous passages for thecooling air. l

Figune is a cross sectional view on line f-3y of FigureV 2, showing how the stefl fastened to the spindle or shaft and. also showing the st iii'eners.

Figure 4 is a sectional view on line 4-4 o f Figure 2.

Figure 5 is aside view ofv a modified form of damper wherein the stffeners are formed in walls of the dampen Figure 6 isa cross Sectional view on line 6-6 of Figure'5.

Figure 6a is asectional view on line (rk-6 of] l'sule 6! VFigure 7, is an elevational view of, another modifiedform of dampen wherein the side walls, while. employing. the stitfening ribs in the Walls.l themselves, are. differently ar ran-ged. in orderto. connect with the spindle or shaft,

Figure 1s. a cross sectional. view on line 8-8 of Figure 7.

25, are made to conform to the cylindrical contour of the spindle.Y

Figure 10j isA a vertical, sectional view through an air cooled damper showing still another modified construction.

Figure 11 is a transverse sectional view on line 11-11 of Figure 10.

Referring to the drawings, preferably to Figures. 1 to 3, inclusive, 1 designates the spindle, the lower end` of which passes through a bearing Qrinthe lower wall ofthe flue and may be coupled in any suitable e manner (not shown) to a forced draft conductor (not shown), sothat the cooling air may pass through the spindle, or shaft 1. I he upper end ofthe spindle has a cap 3, there being a pin or bolt'4 passing through the cap Aand through the spindle..l A suitable swivel'ed eye 5 4is carried by the cap and towhich a chain Gis connected. The chain is7 in turn, connectedto an eye 7 of a bolt S which is suspendedVfrom a suitable support 9 rising from the upper' wall of theaflue or breechingl 10.

At a point adjacent the lower' part of the damper, the hollow spindle is. provided with a partition o r abutment 1 1 and between this partition or abutmentand the lower edge ofthe damper, the spindle is provided. with diametrically opposite openings 12. A suitable collar or sleeve 1 3is fastened to the spindle and, in turn, to the wal'ls of the damper proper 1 4', thereby alfording aV rigid and one 'fonnrof practical construction, A similar collar or sleeveV 15 is fastened to the upper portion of the spindle'in any' suitable manner, preferably byl welding, and corre- Spending-1,7 damper. I n this manner the damper proper 14 ismovablewilli the spindle. Any suitable-or practiCelmeans may be employed for operating the damper to closed or va rions open positions.

The damper proper 14 is made up ofopposed steel shee s 16 constituting the opposite walls ofthe damper. These sheets are fastened to the spi dle by ineans of bolts 1T which pass through the sheets and through the spindle. The! marginal portions of thc sheets. may bek fastenedjtogether by rivets or welding, as at 18.

It will be noted' that in cross. sectional area, asshown in Figure and as shown in Figure 4, the damper wallsA are tapered toward and secured to each other which not only provides a damper which is hollow for the conduction of cooling air but acts to. reinforce the walls of the damper especially when assisted by ribs or fins 19. In Figures to 4, the ribs or fins 139 are constructed from plate niet-al of a single thickness and fastenedlto the upper part ofthe are Welded or otherwise secured in position. The ribs or fins 19 are disposed in staggered relation, thereby providing circuitous passages 2O upon opposite sides of the spindle or fulcruln. 1

Adjacent the top of the damper and on the interior thereof, the spindle or fulcrum is provided With diametrically opposite openings 21 through which the cooling air passes. Adjacent the terminal. portion of the spindle and exteriorly of the upper end of the damper, diametrically opposite openings 22 are provided. Obviously, the cooling air from a forced draft from any suitable source passes through the spindle, through the openings 12, thence through the circuitous passages, then through the openings and eventually dischargethrough the openings 22 to the atmosphere. This cooling air from a forced draft acts to lieep the damper thoroughly cooled and prevents the same from undue warping as a result of the intense heat which passes through the flue or breeching.

Referring to Figures and 6, the walls of the damper are also made up of steel sheets but in lieu of the single thickness ribs or stiffeners 19, the stiffeners are constructed in the Walls or steel plates, the ribs being designed in keeping with the ribs or stilfeners shown in Letters Patent No. 1,416,334. These ribs or stiifeners 23 are, therefore, V-shaped in cross sectional area and extend inwardly of the damper and their apexes touch and may be Welded to the opposite walls. In this construction, it is possible, though not necessary, to provide cover plates 2l to close the hollowv portions of the ribs or stitfeners 23. Furthermore, the opposite Walls ofthe damper in Figures 5 and 6 have additional ribs or stilfeners 25,

which are adjacent the spindle 26 through which bolts 2T pass for holding the Walls to the spindle. Inthe construction in Figures 5 and 6, the marginal portions of the vvalls are shown as Welded, as at 28. In this modified construction, the ribs or stifeners.

are also staggered to cause the circuitous passages to be formed. l

In Figures 7 and 8, the opposed Walls of the damper are also made of steelsheets 29, the marginal portions of which are bolted together. rlhese steel sheets in this construction have their stiffening ribs 30 projecting outwardly instead of inwardly as in F igures 5 and 6, performingthe same purpose as the ribs or stiflieners 25. These ribs or stiffeners 30 are adjacent the spindle or fulcrum 31. Furthermore, certain of the steel sheets or Walls are angularly formed, as at 32, and embrace the spindle, While portions 33 of certain other sheets of the Walls overlap the angular portions. These parts'are secured to the spindle by means of bolts 34. .The steel sheets er Walls of the damper have additional ribs or stiifeners 35 Which are V-shaped in cross sectional area and extend inwardly as in Figures 5 and G, and are also disposed in staggered relation in order to afford circuitous passages through which the cooling air passes foi-'preventing Warping of the Walls of the damper. l

Referring to Figure 9, it will be seen that the construction disclosed is similar to that shown in Figures 5 and 6, With the exception that the reinforcing ribs 25n are curved to conform to the spindle of the damper, the cover plates 24a acting to additionally reinforce the structure and yet permit of a certain amount of expansion and contraction and thereby prevent undue warping of the damper Walls.

Referring to Figures 1() and 11, the opposed Walls of the damper are in sections l() and 41. The sections et() have reinforcing ribs l-2 which conform to the spindle tl and are secured thereto by means of the bolts 44. rllhe sections 11 also are secured to the spindle or journal by the bolts 44 but beyond the bolts, the sections t1 overlap the hollows of the reinforcing ribs j112 and are riveted at 15 to the sections 40. Otherwise, the damper disclosed in igures 10 and 1l is constructed to provide for the circuitous passages, so that the damper may be readily cooled by cold vair received from any source of supply and Ataken through a circuitous course as disclosed by the arrows.

The invention having been set forth, what is claimed is:

1. An air cooled damper comprising a holloiv damper construction With a hollow spindle extending through and fastened to the damper, whereby t-he damper may be moved to closed and various open positions, the spindle having diainetrically opposite openings adjacent the opp-osite ends of theY draniper but Within the interior thereof, the damper having Icircuitous passages on opposite sides of the spindle and connnunieating with said openings for the conduction of a cooling air from the exterior at one end of the spindle and permitted to discharge at the opposite end of the spindle.

2. An air coo-led damper including a hol low spindlel adap-ted for connection with a. source of cooling air and provided at one end with means to discharge the cooling air exteriorly of a flue or breeching, and a damper movable with the spindle and provided With circuitous passages on opposite sides thereof through which the cooling air passes from the spindle and then through the spindle at the opposite end and eventually to the atmosphere, saidpassages being in communication With the spindle at oppositeends' of the damper and Within the same.

3. 'An air cooled damper consisting' of a llO Vas the result of intense heat in hollow spindle communicating at ono cm1 with a source of cooling air and provided with cooling air discharge means at its opposite end, and a. damper of hollow structure movable with the spindle and provided with interior ribs or division walls in staggered relation, causing circuitous passages to be formed, the opposite ends o't the circi'iitous passages being in communication with the spindle for the conduction o't the cooling air through the damper to the atmosphere.

Ll. The combination with a breaching, ot' a damper spindle mounted therein communicating at one end with a source ot cooling air and having air cooling discharging` means at its opposite end, and a damper ol' hollow structure movable with the. spindle and provided with circuitous passages conimunicating at their opposite ends with the interior oit the spindle, whereby the cooling air may pass through the damper in circuitous courses.

5. The combination with a breeching ot a damper spindle mounted therein communicating at one end with a source ot cooling air and having air cooling discharging means at its opposite end, and a damper ot hollow structure movable with thel spindle and provided with circuitous )riassages coni- Inunicating at their opposite ends with the interior of the spindle, whereby the cooling air. may pass through the damper in` circuitous courses, said damper having its walls tapered toward! earch other in cross sectional area transversely and longitudinally, thereby preventing warping ot the walls ot the d an ip er.

6. [in air cooled damper including a hol low spindle communicating with a source et cooling [luid atene end, with discharge means for the luid at the opposite endy and af damper ol' hollow spindle and pr vided with circuitous pascoininunicating with the spindle at locations within the damper adjacent opposite ends thereof whereby, due to the conduction ot' the cooling fluid, the walls ot the damper are prevented from undue warning a flue or breeching.

7. A hollow damper with its walls tapered toward and connecting each other sectionally, transverselyv and longitudinally and provided with circuitious passages, a spindle movable with the damper and communicating with the opposite ends ot the circuitous passages, and means Ytor pern'iitting a cooling fluid to pass through the spindle at one end and discharge at the opposite end.

8f. A superheat breeching including a spindle end pieces mounted therein, said spindle end pieces having inlet and discharge passages from andrto the exterior ot the breeching, and a damper on the spindle end pieces and provided with circuitous passtructure fixed Vto the sages therein connecting the inlet and discharge passages to permit a cooling fluid to pass therethrough from the exterior at one end oli the spindle end pieces and dischargel to the exterior at the other end piece.

9. An air cooled damper for superheat l'luesor breechings consisting of a hollow damper body provided with means to per-- mit a. cooling fluid to pass therethrough from the exterior to the exterior, the opposed walls ol tac damper having stiffeners disposed in staggered relation7 causing circuitons pas-A to be 'termed 'for the cooling vfluid.

1.0 ln air cooled damper lier superheat tlues or breechings consisting ot' a hollow damper body provided with 'means to permit a cooling tiuid to pass therethrough from the exterior to the exterior, said damper body consisting ol opposed walls provided with stiiieners at points adjacent the center of the damper and extending longitudinally thereof, thereby stiidenin'g the walls.

11. Anair cooled damper for superheat llues or breechings consisting of a hollow damper body provided with means to permit a cooling fluid to pass therethrough 'trom the exterior to the exterior of the breeching7 the opposed walls of the damper having stilleners disposed in staggered relation, causing circuitous passages to be Yformed for the cooling fluid, said walls el the damper body having stifleners adjacent the longitudinal center ot the damper 'for additionally reinforcing the damp-er walls and preventing undue warping and yet allowing the walls to expand and contract incident to the cooling fluid on the interior ol the damper and the intense heat on the interior ot the breeching.

12. A hollow damper structure provided with means for the conduction of a cooling 'fluid through the damper, said damper body consisting ot opposed walls and a spindle, the opposed walls adjacent the spindle beingangu ar in cross sectional area and secured to the spindle, certain of the walls overlapping, and stilfeners formed in the walls at points adjacent the spindle to prevent undue warping.

13. A. hollow damper structure provided. with means for the conduction ot a cooling fluid through the damper, said damper body consisting ol opposed walls and a spindle,

the opposed walls adjacent the spindle beingangular in cross sectional area and secured to the spindle, certain ot' the walls overlapping, and stitleners mounted in. the walls at points adjacent the spindle to prevent undue warping, the interior of the damper body having additional stifleners disposed in staggered relation toy provide circuitous passages for the cooling fluid.

14. A hollow damper body provided with means for the conduction of a coolingfluid therethrough to prevent warping ot the walls of the damper, said air conduction means consisting of circuit-ous passages ex-L tending in a plane longitudinally of thel damper, communicating with a sourcey of supply at one end and discharging to the atmosphere atvthe other end. s 15. A hollow damper body structure vprovided with means for the conduction of a cooling fluid to prevent warping, the damper body having a spindle and consisting of opposed Walls with certain parts thereof enveloping the spindle and secured thereto.

16. A hollow damper body structure provided with means for the conduction of a cooling fluid to prevent warping, vthe damper body having aspindle and consisting of opposed walls with certain parts thereof enveloping the spindle and secured thereto, the interior of the damper having stiffeners disposed in staggered relation causing circui-` tous passages to be formed as elements of the air cooling fluid conducting means.

17. The combination with a superheat breeching7 of a spindle mounted acrosstlie breeching for rocking movement and hav- 'ing inlet and discharge passages at its opposite ends communicating with the exterior of the breeching, and a damper on the spindle and rockable therewith and provided with circuitous passages therein connecting the inlet and discharge passages to permit a Cooling' fluid to pass therethrough 'from the exterior and discharge to the exterior.

In witness whereof, in the presence of two witnesses, the inventors signature is hereunto allixed.

ILLIABM. CONN ERY.

Witnesses:

E. C. ANooTT, ALBERT D. STEWART. 

